The Workshop of Dreams book

Naranjo—Etxeberria’s book recaps an ambitious project that gave form to dreams.

Dreams came alive through El taller de los sueños (The workshop of dreams), a global initiative which used wood to celebrate Spanish creativity and craftsmanship. By tasking four renowned designers and architects with interpreting and giving form to the dreams of creators from diverse fields, beautiful objects made out of American hardwoods took form. Partnerships included Juan Mari Arzak and Elena Arzak, well-known Spanish chefs, with designer/architect Izaskun Chinchilla; writer Javier Cercas with RCT Architects; architect Benedetta Tagliabue interpreted the dreams of fellow architect Martha Thorne; and Juan Luis Arsuaga, a paleontologist, worked with designer Jacob Benbunan. The ambitious project concluded with an exhibition at Hay Festial Segovia. To recap the process, Madrid, Spain–based design studio Naranjo—Etxeberria created a book to accompany the exhibition, but no ordinary one. Detailing how dreams materialized into real objects required a publication no less considerate in its usage of materials and production details. In the book, as with the collection of wooden objects, dreams grabbed hold.